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The Web Content Style Guide:
Excerpt
Designing for the Web: Part 5
Navigation and search are critical
There are 550 billion documents on the Web—information overload in the extreme. When
was the last time you went beyond the second page of a set of search results (even
though there were 100,000 returned)?
Your reader does not want to spend a long time looking for content on your website. If
they don’t see a result quickly, they’re off to your competitor.
There are lots of complex-sounding words for organizing content on the Web: metadata,
classification, taxonomy, XML, navigation. Take metadata, for example. Metadata may
sound strange but without it your website is like that proverbial needle in the
haystack.
Metadata is the “who, what, where, when, and how” of a particular website. Think about
it as an extension of grammar. Metadata is about classifying your content in a
directory structure that will help the reader navigate to it easily.
Metadata also collects keywords and other information on your content such as author
name and date of publication. This sort of information makes the search of your
website much more efficient. Without quality metadata, you are lost on the Web.
Metadata makes it possible to create quality navigation and search, which are the
foundations on which all websites are built. Navigation deals with how readers move
through a website, search is how readers search for something specific.
The larger the website gets, the more critical navigation and search become. This is
where the complexity and elegance of web design comes into play.
Navigation design is about providing a variety of logical paths through the content,
such as allowing the reader to navigate by geographic sector or by subject matter.
It’s about letting the reader know where they are (by using prominent section
headings), where they’ve been (by using correctly colored hyperlinks), and where
they’re going (by using self-explanatory classification names) at all times.
It’s about providing context for the reader—a classification issue that involves, for
example, classifying all content on notebook computer X in the same section.
Navigation is about following web convention—going with what the reader is familiar
with—such as having the ‘Home’ link as the first link on your global navigation
running across every page on the site.
Designing a quality search is about making sure that you have quality metadata for
every webpage so that search can be at its most efficient. It’s also about having a
search box on every page of your website. Remember, search is something that we do all
the time. Don’t hide your search behind a link.
Design for interactivity
When a reader comes to your website, you want them to do something positive, such as
purchase your product. Surprise, surprise, the reader has the very same intention.
Most of us don’t go to the Web for the fun of it. We’re action-oriented. We want to do
something.
If you want to sell stuff, put it on the homepage. Never put up splash pages or
anything else that might get in the way of the reader doing what they want to do. Keep
your pages light and zippy so that they download quickly, because if they take longer
than 10 seconds to download, most of your customers will be gone.
The Web is an interactive place, right? How many websites hide their contact details?
Isn’t it unbelievable that when you’re looking for a telephone number, email, or
postal address you can’t find it?
Some readers want to voice their opinion, contribute to discussion, join an online
community. This interaction should be encouraged, but it also should be moderated.
Discussion areas that are unmoderated quickly become disaster zones.
The Web is a ‘pull’ medium. Every day you’ve got to bring readers back. That’s no easy
task. What you need is some ‘push’ tools. An email newsletter is a great way of
keeping your readers informed of what’s happening. It should be a primary objective of
every website to get people to subscribe to an email mail shot or newsletter. But make
sure you send them only quality content and that you do it on a regular basis.
Talking of subscribing, people are paranoid about their privacy on the Web—and with
good reason. If you are collecting information about people for subscription services
or personalization, make sure you look after it, and don’t abuse it. You’ll lose
customers if you do.
Next: Part 6:
Summary: keep it simple, structured, and reader-centric
Previous:
Part 4: Web layout is simple layout
Part 1 - Part 2 -
Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 -
Part 6
The Web Content Style Guide
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for the Web, from The Web Content Style Guide
Writing for the Web (PDF 219 KB)
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Reviews for
The Web Content Style Guide
I
will certainly be recommending this book to others
By Malcolm Davison, CEO, Writing For The Web
"This comprehensive and authoritative overview of content management starts with
useful guidelines to writing and designing web material. If only most webmasters would heed the sound advice given here, then web surfing would be a much happier experience
for us all!
Web-Publishing With Ease
By Colin Ong, CEO, MR=MC Consulting, Singapore
"This book is an essential guide in helping people plan an
effective web-publishing presence through a simple A-Z format. The reader can use this
book as a good source of reference. On a personal note, the book has encouraged me to
rethink my portals' attractiveness to my target audience.
It's worth your time and money
By Phil Matous, CEO, Taylor Community Credit Union, Michigan, USA
"The first chapter alone is worth the price of the book. Great ideas on writing
for either traditional or web viewers. Easy to read and insightful."
Book reviews homepage
Buy The Web Content Style Guide
Most of us don’t go to the
Web for the fun of it. We’re action-oriented. We want to do something.
The Web is a ‘pull’ medium.
Every day you’ve got to bring readers back. That’s no easy task. |
